


Fireplace

by Loria_in_eternity



Category: The Clockmaster (Webcomic)
Genre: Christmas Movies, Drabble, Fluff, Handholding, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-17
Updated: 2019-09-17
Packaged: 2020-10-20 05:50:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20670365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loria_in_eternity/pseuds/Loria_in_eternity
Summary: Warming your hands after you've been out in the cold for a while can hurt, at first. A little. But it's worth it.





	Fireplace

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Marcia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marcia/gifts).

> This is a very belated Christmas present for my good friend Marcia, which I found the other day and polished up. She may have died upon reading it but her will said to share it with the world, so here it is! Her lovely webcomic can be found at the-clockmaster.com, although you probably know that if you're reading this! If you don't, check it out, it's great, you can see more Orion and Garret! Not much handholding yet though, rip. In twenty years or so a lot of this fic will probably be even better because it will have the slightest canon justification, but I promise we'll get there.

Garret leaned into the back of the couch, surreptitiously stretching out his legs. He might be more accomplished when it came to running, climbing, or hiding from curious passersby in alleyways, but in movie watching Orion had his endurance beat. 

The entertainment value provided by pretending he hadn’t realised Orion had put this (terrible) Christmas movie on deliberately, knowing it was bad, was making up for it, though. No doubt he had expected Garret to say something within the first half an hour, at the very least, after the protagonist had broken out the world’s worst fake crying, and then they could have either started making fun of it or put on something else. 

The fundamental error in this plan was that there was no way Garret was going to break first. 

Besides, the way that Orion kept glancing over, as if he couldn’t believe Garret was as enraptured by the screen as he seemed to be (good instincts) was all the reward he needed. The warm body curled against his side, tucked under a shared blanket, didn’t hurt either. Everything felt warm, Orion, the blanket, the mulled wine softening the edges of his mind, and more than that--something small and formless and aching in the pit of his chest felt warm too.

He took another sip of the wine, feigning shock as the male romantic lead told the protagonist he’d actually been her father’s stock investor's estranged son the whole time! Reaching over casually, he draped an arm around Orion’s shoulder, pulling him closer. Taking their empty glasses and setting them down, his hand found Orion’s, fingers linking together a little awkwardly, eyes on the screen. 

In the corner of his eye, he could see Orion’s ears were flushed. In the same moment, Orion was looking over, and their eyes met. The warmth in his chest fluttered like a stoked fire; a refuge from the cold of the wet, winter night. It made your bones ache to be outside on a night like this. The air shredded your lungs like ice-cold water. He wasn’t outside, though: and somehow without his needing to try, the memories evaporated in that heat.

**Author's Note:**

> Reviews  
"My life peaked. It's only downhill from here." - Marcia, 2019  
"*Muffled, screaming into pillow*" - Marcia, 2019  
"WTF are they doing it's 1AM" - Our other flatmate presumably. Sorry. 2019
> 
> I leave you with Marcia's final words, on this subject, and possibly in her life:  
"This fic is a warm pan and I'm a freshly popped corn. Warm, happy.... and a SNACK."


End file.
